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THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURIST 



Floral Edition. 



Madonna lilies and -sweet william, as grown in 



the perennial border of Mrs. Laura Rose 



Stephen, Huntingdon, Que. 



the best. Avoid that which is very rot- 

 ten and soil-like. Choose that wliich is 

 light and flaky. The best loam is the 

 upper three inches of turf from an old 

 pasture. 



In preparing the compost tear the 

 loam into small pieces with the hands. 

 Bub the j€af mould and manure 

 through the sieve. Spread it out on 

 the ground and sprinkle with boiling 

 water to kill grubs and other pests. 



Having secured some suitable pots, 

 place one large piece of broken crock- 

 ery over the drainage hole, then three 

 or four slightly smaller ones, then a 

 layer of small ones on top. Cover the 

 crocks with rough soil siftings or moss. 

 This prevents the soil washing down 

 into the drainage amid stopping the exit. 

 Particular attention must be given to 

 this part of the operation. I have re- 

 ferred to the fact that speciosum is one 

 of the lilies producing two sets of roots. 

 In potting bulbs of this lily, therefore, 

 the pot must be only half filled with 

 the compost, only so much compost 

 (about two inches), therefore, must be 

 placed over the crocks as will half fill 

 the pot. Having so filled the pot that 

 the top of the bulb will be five inches 

 from the surface, place a handful of 

 samd about the centre over the com- 

 post and plant the lily on the sand. 

 Place a little more sand around the 

 sides of the bulb, adding enough com- 

 post to surround the bulb nearly to 

 the apex. The bulbs of speciosum must 

 not be covered more than this until the 

 growth is six inches high. When the 

 lily has attained that height, fill up the 

 pot with compost for the stem-roots to 

 feed upon. 



When planting candidum remember 

 tha-t it is an exception to the rule as 

 regards depth of planting. The bulb 

 must not be planted deejjer than three 

 inches. Hints on planting tiiis bulb 

 have already been given and need not 

 be repeated. * 



in planting bulbs in a border, dig a 

 hole large enough to contain a shovel- 

 ful of sand or gravel at the bottom and 

 place over this several inches of com- 

 post of the kind mentioned. Surround 

 the bulbs in the same way with sand. 

 If planting a single bulb, a large 

 enough hole can be made with a trowel. 

 On no account omit the sand, as this 

 affords the bulbs proper drainage. 

 Newly planted bulbs require a little 

 water giveji once a week. 



October is the best month for plant- 

 ing most of the lilies, but candidum 

 should be planted in September. Lilies 

 like partial shade. 



Once planted the bulbs need not be 

 disturbed and each year will become 

 more valuable through the increaaing 

 spikes. The stf>ck, too, will increase 

 by saving the small bulbs or "offsets" 

 which form alongside the parent buli) 

 every year. The.se can be planted out 

 in the flower border. 



When the first frosts appear, cover 

 the ground all about the spot where 

 the bulbs are to the depth of a foot 

 with a mulching of dead leaves. A lit- 

 tle soil sprinkled over these, or a piece 

 of wire netting, will keep them in posi- 

 tion. In spring these can gradually be 

 removed. When all have been remov- 

 ed a little old manure may be dug in, 

 taking care not to injure the bulb. 



When the plant has finished flo^v€r- 

 ing, and the stems have commenced to 

 Avither, cut them off a few inches above 

 the gro\uid. 



Hints on Transplanting 



E. P. Smart, Brockville, Ont. 



AFTER these forty years of labor 

 among plants and flowers, it 

 would be a remarkable thing if 

 I had not made some discoveries as to 

 methods of planting and transplanting. 

 I do not say, original discoveries, as- no 

 doubt other gardeners, from Adam 

 down, have made similar discoveries. 



The most unorthodox things (accord- 

 ing to the books on gardening) have 

 been done in my garden with the most 

 extraordinarily successful results, but 

 the one x^oint I would impress on all 

 amateur gardeners and experimenters 

 in gardening processes, is the impera- 

 tive need of carefulness in planting and 

 transplanting. The finest roots or 

 bulbs carelessly or hurriedly planted 

 will never give the best results. With 

 care and "some knowledge of the re- 

 quirements and nature of roots, one 

 can transplant successfully at any time 

 during the growing season. Even rose 

 bushes carefully lifted and transplant- 

 ed after flowering, may be made to 

 thrive in an astonishing way — but only 

 as the result of care. In the case of 

 roses this is seldom advisable or neces- 

 sary, but I mention it as an example of 

 what can be done and what has been 

 done when the need arose. 



My invariable method of transplant- 

 ing Aots, whether of annuals or per- 

 ennials, is, first of all, to have the 

 ground well dug and mellow. I then 

 make in the soft earth a hole deep 

 enough to allow the tips of the roots 

 to be placed in their natural position. 

 This is next partly filled with earth and 

 watered liberally, even lavishly. When 

 the water is quite absorbed I fill up 

 with earth above the level of the 

 ground and press the earth firmly 



down around the stem of the plant 

 with the trowel or hand. This latter i.s 

 of great importance. In the case of 

 larger roots tramping with the foot is 

 the best method. This makes the plant 

 firm and upright and prevents the air 

 penetrating the earth and drying up 

 the tender roots before they have got 

 established. No watering on the sur- 

 face is needed for a week or more — 

 perhaps never. 



Paeonies have been transplanted in 

 this way from one part of my garden 

 to another, and have flowered pro- 

 fusely the following spring, much to 

 my surprise, as they are among that 

 class of plants which deeply resent be- 

 ing disturbed. As to bulbs, lilies and 

 other kinds, a long experience has 

 shown that after the period of bloom is 

 over and while the plant is in a de- 

 cadent state, and later on in its dor- 

 mant condition, nothing must be al- 

 lowed to grow over the ground or even 

 to shade it from the sunlight, else the 

 bulbs deteriorate and the blossoms of 

 the next year will be inferior, both in 

 size and number, and if such condi- 

 tions continue, the bulbs eventually die. 

 This is often the reason why amateur 

 gardeners fail with lilies of various 

 kinds; also, Avith the handsome Crown 

 Imperials which bloom in the early 

 spring and are so liable to be over- 

 grown later on. While speaking of 

 bulbs, emphasis must be laid on the 

 importance of deeper planting than 

 usually prevails. Bulbs have a ten- 

 dency to come towards the surface of 

 the ground, consequently deep planting 

 is necessary. 



The autumn season is par excellence 

 the time of all others for the trans- . 



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